Politics Curriculum Map
Statement of Intent
TBC
Year 12 Curriculum Map
Government of the United Kingdom
The nature and sources of the British Constitution
Students should analyse and evaluate:
the nature and sources of the British constitution
contemporary legislation and current issues regarding rights
issues and debates around recent constitutional changes
debates about the extent of rights in the UK
two examples of constitutional changes since 1997.
areas where individual and collective rights are in agreement and where they are in conflict.
The structure and role of Parliament
Students should analyse and evaluate:
scrutiny of the executive and how effective scrutiny of the executive is in practice
parliamentary debate and the legislative process
Commons
Lords
theories of representation – Burkean, delegate, mandate theories
the roles and influence of MPs and peers
the significance of Commons and Lords:
work of committees
role of the opposition
the extent of Parliament’s influence on government decisions:
Party discipline enables the government to routinely outvote opposition
government control of civil servants’ appearances before Select Committees
membership of those committees is largely controlled by the Whips’ offices.
interactions of parliament and other branches of government.
The Prime Minister and cabinet
Students should analyse and evaluate:
how policy is made
the relationship between Prime Minister and cabinet
The difference between individual and collective responsibility.
The power of the Prime Minister and cabinet to dictate events and determine policy making.
Government/parliament relations – accountability/interest.
Politics of the United Kingdom
Democracy and participation
Students should develop awareness of development of the suffrage in the UK – debates and issues:
how suffrage has changed since the Great Reform Act (1832) to the present
debates regarding gender, class, ethnicity and age
the significance of the Chartists, Suffragists and Suffragettes
suffrage as a human right.
Students will be required to analyse and evaluate:
the nature of democracy
different types of democracy – direct democracy, representative government
patterns of participation and different forms of participation.
Elections and referendums
Students will be required to analyse and evaluate the characteristics of different systems used in parliamentary elections and in elections to one of the devolved bodies in the UK including:
debates and issues around the performance of those systems
the advantages and disadvantages of those systems
three key elections since 1945 should be selected for detailed study. These should include:
the 1997 general election
one election from before 1997
one election since 1997.
Political parties
students should analyse and evaluate:
the origins, ideas and development of the Conservative, Labour, and Liberal Democrat parties and how these have helped shape their current policies
party structures and functions of Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat parties
issues and debates around party funding
relations with, and influence of, the media
factors affecting electoral outcomes
policies of minor parties and their impact on political debates and political agenda
development towards a multi-party system in the UK and its impact on government and policy.
Government of the United Kingdom
The judiciary
Students should analyse and evaluate:
the composition of the judiciary and the appointments process
the role of the Supreme Court and its impact on government, legislature and policy process
judicial influence on government
importance of ultra vires, judicial review and the Supreme Court’s interactions with and influence over the legislative and policy making processes.
Devolution
Students should analyse and evaluate:
the roles, powers and responsibilities of the different devolved bodies in the UK
debate around devolution in England
existing devolution in England
impact of devolution on the government of the UK.
Politics of the United Kingdom
Pressure Groups
Students should analyse and evaluate:
pressure groups and democracy – pluralism
other influences on government and parliament:
think tanks
lobbyists
corporations
media
typologies of pressure groups, including a detailed study of one insider and one outsider group
methods used by pressure groups
factors likely to affect the political influence of different groups, such as membership and resources
links with political parties, government and the media.
The European Union
Students should analyse and evaluate:
aims of the EU and the extent to which they have been achieved
the impact of the EU on UK politics and policy making.
Government and Politics of the USA and Comparative Politics
The constitutional framework of US government
Students should analyse and evaluate:
the nature and significance of the US Constitution
the significance of constitutional principles
framework of government laid down in the US Constitution
federal system of government
federal state relations
amendment process
debates concerning the importance of the US Constitution to the working of contemporary US government
protection of civil liberties and rights under the US Constitution, Bill of Rights, and Supreme Court rulings.
The legislative branch of government: Congress
Students should analyse and evaluate:
the structure, role and powers of the US Congress
composition of Congress, the different terms of office and party allegiance
debates concerning the functions, powers and effectiveness of Congress in legislation, oversight and the power of the purse
party system and committee system and their significance within Congress
representative role of senators and representatives
relative strengths of the House of Representatives and the Senate
relationship of Congress to the executive branch of government and the Supreme Court.
The executive branch of government: President
sources of presidential power: selecting two relevant examples to demonstrate how these have been used by different presidents
difference between formal powers (enumerated and inherent powers outlined in Article 2 of the constitution) and informal powers (President as de facto party leader, agenda setter, world leader, modern developments eg stretching of implied powers and the creation of institutions such as Executive Office of the President (EXOP))
constraints on President’s ability to exercise those powers:
the effectiveness of formal checks and balances
key variables such as party support in Congress
the prevailing orientation of the Supreme Court
the attitudes of the media and public opinion
the relationship between the presidency and other institutions eg the cabinet, the Executive Office of the President (EXOP), the federal bureaucracy and federal agencies, and why this relationship varies from one president to another
one example that shows the waxing and waning of presidential power
the debate about the ‘Imperial versus Imperilled Presidency’.
Political ideas
Liberalism
Students should analyse and evaluate:
debates about the nature of liberalism
core liberal ideas and values concerning the individual and freedom
classical liberalism, modern (new/progressive) liberalism
in their study of the following thinkers students should focus on the aspects indicated after each thinker’s name and relate this to liberal thinking on human nature, the state, society and the economy:
John Locke – natural rights, liberty and individualism, fiduciary power of government
John Stuart Mill – criticism of hedonism, freedom, integrity and self respect of the individual, self regarding and other regarding actions
John Rawls – concept of justice, principles of justice
Thomas Hill Green – self development/role of the State, negative and positive freedom
Mary Wollstonecraft – equality and rights, ‘revolution controversy’, criticisms of aristocracy and republicanism
Betty Friedan – equal rights, Civil Rights and feminist movements in the USA.
Conservatism
Students should analyse and evaluate:
debates about the nature of conservatism
core conservative ideas and values concerning government, the free market and the individual
different strands of conservative thinking from traditional Conservatism to the New Right
in their study of the following thinkers students should focus on the aspects indicated after each thinker’s name and relate this to conservative thinking on human nature, the state, society and the economy:
Thomas Hobbes – concept of human nature/laws of nature, power of the sovereign/the individual and self protection
Edmund Burke – Anti-Jacobinism/Whig principles, Burke’s reaction to the American and French Revolutions
Michael Oakeshott – importance of tradition/criticisms of rationalism, ‘Politics of Faith’ vs ‘Politics of Scepticism’
Ayn Rand – opposition to collectivism and statism, rational and ethical egoism/individual rights
Robert Nozick – limited functions of the State, justification of inequalities of wealth resulting from freely exchanged contracts.
Year 13 Curriculum Map
Government and Politics of the USA and Comparative Politics
The judicial branch of government
process of selection and appointment of Supreme Court judges
current composition
the nature of judicial power
the constitutional role of the Supreme Court:
Supreme Court as the guardian of the constitution/constitutional interpretation
Supreme Court as protector of citizens’ rights
the significance of judicial review
debates about the political significance of the Supreme Court
two examples of landmark rulings and related debates and controversies
The electoral process and direct democracy
Students should analyse and evaluate:
the electoral systems used in the USA
main characteristics of presidential and congressional elections and campaigns
candidate selection and nomination:
primaries
caucuses
national nominating conventions
debates concerning the workings, outcomes and impact of the electoral college system on campaigns
factors determining electoral outcomes:
money
media
issues
leadership
the significance of incumbency
debates about campaign finance
direct democracy at state level:
referendums, initiatives, propositions, recall elections and debates concerning their use
voting behaviour and the main variables affecting the way people vote in the USA
links between parties and their core voting coalitions
factors in voting behaviour:
issues, candidates
the significance of recent (post 1980) and historic (eg 1932 and 1968) re-aligning elections can be used to illustrate arguments relating to factors influencing voting
split ticket voting and high levels of abstention in US elections.
Political ideas
Socialism
Students should analyse and evaluate:
debates about the nature of socialism
core socialist views and values concerning Marxism, class analysis and the fundamental goals of socialism
differing views and tensions within and between revolutionary socialism and social democracy
in their study of the following thinkers students should focus on the aspects indicated after each thinker’s name and relate this to socialist thinking on human nature, the state, society and the economy:
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels – class and class struggle, dialectical materialism
Rosa Luxemburg – inevitability of the triumph of revolution/capacity of the masses, spontaneity/party oriented class struggle
Beatrice Webb – co-operative movement, co-operative federalism and co-operative individualism
Anthony Crosland – criticism of Marxism/Revisionism, rejection of nationalisation as central goal of party, political values of personal liberty, social welfare and equality
Anthony Giddens – rejection of traditional conception of socialism, the ‘Third Way’ in politics, combination of right wing economic and left wing social policies.
Government and Politics of the USA and Comparative Politics
Political parties
Students should analyse and evaluate:
the two main political parties and their:
ideologies
values
policies
traditions
party organisation
the ideological changes in both the Democratic and Republican parties making them more distinct and polarized
factionalised nature of parties and internal divisions
debates concerning party decline or renewal
weakness of US parties
the two party dominance in US politics
significance of third parties and independent candidates.
Pressure groups
Students should analyse and evaluate:
the extent of political pluralism in the USA
typologies of pressure groups
methods and tactics used by pressure groups to influence decision making
pressure group funding of elections:
funding of Washington insiders
iron triangles
reinforcing incumbency
relative power of pressure groups vis-a-vis political parties
debates concerning the power of pressure groups in the USA
role and significance of Political Action Committees and Super PAC’s regarding electoral finance.
Civil rights
Students should analyse and evaluate:
protection of civil liberties and rights under:
the constitution
Bill of Rights
subsequent amendments
landmark rulings of the Supreme Court
the role of pressure groups in promoting and supporting rights
the impact of salient political issues concerning civil rights and liberties on US politics eg in relation to one of:
abortion
race
immigration
religion
freedom of speech
gender
sexual orientation
privacy
disability
the right to bear arms
Political ideas
Feminism
Students should analyse and evaluate:
debates about the nature of feminism
core feminist views and values concerning equality of treatment, recognition of gender differences, affirmative action
liberal feminism and radical feminism, and more recent developments such as difference feminism and post-feminism
in their study of the following thinkers students should focus on the aspects indicated after each thinker’s name and relate this to feminist thinking on human nature, the state, society and the economy:
Charlotte Perkins Gilman – reform Darwinism, role of females in society, androcentric culture
Simone de Beauvoir – feminist existentialism, patriarchal society, feminism and socialism
Kate Millett – theory of sexual politics, radical feminism
Sheila Rowbotham – oppression of women and the working class, socialist feminism
bell hooks (Gloria Jean Watkins) – intersectionality, education gap between those lower in the economic scale and the leader of the feminist movement.
Summer
Revision/Exams